Need new boiler, Cost ideas.

[kiloalpha]

Hi

I had posted few days ago my potterton puma was not lighting up, pilot flame kept dying, it sorted itself out and started working fine, or so I thought.
Well yesterday it packed up completely, the pilot light is on but when I put the hot water on the big flame is not starting, its the same for CH AND HW. I called two guys around to have a look and they said its gone, we could repair it but there will be no warranties of how long they will work for.
So finally I think I have made up my mind to get a new boiler, I was recommended either Main or Valliant eco tec pro 28. Are these the right choices.
I have looked on the forum and Intergas seems to be the favourite, would the installer charge me extra on that.
I have a standard 2 bed semi and one bath, my potterton puma 80 i think is 24kw.
What would you recommend to replace it with.
Also the quote for Val eco tec pro 24 is 1700 pounds supply and fit, does this price sound right.
I have another guy who is saying you get the boiler and I do the fitting for 700.
Also one more important thing after the survey they found out that my pipe coming in to the property is 22mm but what is going into the boiler is 15mm, they said we will need to check the pressure and if the pressure is correct we can install the boiler on a 15mm pipe.
Is that correct or does the regulation need a 22mm pipe.

 

[muggles]

Main and Vaillant are almost opposite ends of the scale - Main boilers are about the cheapest thing you can get, Vaillant are amongst the most expensive although the Ecotec Pro is their cheaper more plasticky version. Personally, I'd have an Intergas; if you don't want to stretch to a Combi Compact HRE there's now a Rapid which is cheaper (but has a shorter warranty). What your installer charges is up to him, and depends on many variables such as which part of the country you're in (you've not mentioned this), where the boiler is located, how much upgrading of your system is required etc etc.

If the pipe you're talking about is the gas pipe, that depends on the length of the pipe, the number of elbows, and the demand on the pipe (IE how powerful the boiler is). It might be fine in 15mm, it might need 22mm, or it might need 28mm. Without being there, it's impossible to say

 

[kiloalpha]

Hi

Thanks for the reply
I am in london and the gas pipe coming in to the property is 22mm but what goes into the boiler is 15 so he is charging 200 pounds to change that which is not part of the 700 pounds he is charging for labour.
This is basically going on the same wall, exactly same place.
But my old potterton puma is definitely quite old with looks of it, I dont think he is changing a lot in terms of pipework other than changing the pipe going into boiler at 15mm to be changed to 22mm.
I have read a lot on the forum and seen intergas is a very highly recommended boiler, Any particular reason why it is so much more better than lets say a vaillant for example.
I have found a platinum certified intergas installer near my area, which boiler is good if I do go for intergas, I need a 28kw, I dont mind spending bit extra to get a good quality.

 

[muggles]

I'd suggest £700 is rather cheap for London, but he's seen the job and I haven't. The pipes under the boiler will almost certainly require some alteration as it's highly unlikely they'll line up with the new boiler, so that'll obviously take some time and effort.

Intergas boilers have far fewer moving parts than Vaillant et al, and so are inherently more reliable. They also have bigger waterways that are much less likely to get clogged up with muck, they're made of metal instead of plastic, they're easier to service and don't require gasket changes which cost you extra money, controls are generally cheaper and adding more energy-efficient controls is also cheaper and easier. If you go for the HRE, you get a seven year warranty, or the EcoRF comes with a ten year warranty. There's not much internally to choose between them really.

 

[kiloalpha]

Thank you so much for the reply.
I will learn more about intergas then.

 

[muggles]

There are a few good guys on here who are P5 installers in London, although London is a big place so you might still be out of area!

 

[Agile]

In a situation like this I would repair the Puma ( usually £84/£94 plus parts ) and then discount the labour element from my cost of installing a new boiler within three months.

My basic combi installation price is a bit more than your £700 guy's as its £840 but then I include the first 3 m of accessible 22 mm gas pipe upgrade.

Tony

 

[kiloalpha]

In a situation like this I would repair the Puma ( usually £84/£94 plus parts ) and then discount the labour element from my cost of installing a new boiler within three months.

My basic combi installation price is a bit more than your £700 guy's as its £840 but then I include the first 3 m of accessible 22 mm gas pipe upgrade.

Tony

Thank you so much for the info, I am thinking of actually going ahead with a new boiler for peace of mind as well as I know its an oldie, did well though I think. Hes charging 700 for installation but also 200 to change from 15mm pipe to 22mm, he said he will see the pressure and decide, if pressure is ok we dont need to change anything else we will.

I am hoping what he said was correct.

 

[muggles]

Sounds sensible to me. I hope he's chemically flushing your system for that; no chemical flush = no warranty, whatever boiler you choose

 

[kiloalpha]

Hi

I have narrowed down to http://www.hpwarehouse.co.uk/intergas-compact-eco-rf-30-boiler-pack.html

I am definitely going for this one, I have spoken to the installer just now and he said he will do a chemical flush and then add inhibitor, that is included in the 700 pounds he will charge. I asked him what he would install between Vaillant and intergas, he said you have done research hence you know about intergas, they are very good but if we recommend to people who dont know a lot about boilers, they always want vaillant and hence we quote for that as it is a well known brand. But I am not sure if he is platinum installer coz when I asked him he said I have some training in jan after which i will become one, I dont know if that is how you become platinum certified or whatever. Is he right. Also the 10 year warranty is that parts and labour?

 

[muggles]

Excellent choice. Warranty is parts and labour, if he's not been on the training yet he won't have his P5 number

 

[kiloalpha]

Thank you so much.
So does the warranty come regardless of whether he is certified or does it come only if he is certified, I just want to make sure that the warranty is valid.

 

[Agile]

It depends on the exact Intergas model.

I thought the maximum was five years though.

The slightly cheaper Rapid model is three years regardless of who fits it, extendable by a further three years on payment of about £150 to them which they told me can be done at any time during the first three years.

Tony

 

[muggles]

It depends on the exact Intergas model.

I thought the maximum was five years though.

Seven years on the HRE, ten on the ECO Tony, it's been like that for a few months. Must admit I'm unclear as to whether you have to be P5 or not to offer it though

 

[Agile]

The Eco seems so over the top on price that I have never considered them for anything I would do.

I think you have to have the P5 for the longer warranties.